Hydrant-cap.



N0. 694,|70. Patented Feb. 25, |902. J. P. MERN. HYDBANT GAP.

(Application led June 27, 1901.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

1H: cams PETERS co.. now-urna. wAswmn'roN, n. c.

Patented Feb. 25, |902.

J. P. MERN.

HYDRANT GAP.

(Appliction led June 27, 1901,)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

QNo Model.)

@Vi Pu ons co UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN PHILLIPS MERN, OF BROOKLYN, NEV YORK.

HYDRANT-CAP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 694,170, dated February 25, 1902. Application filed .Tune 27,1901. Serial No. 66,296. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN PHILLIPS MERN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Hydrant Cap or Head, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to novel means for facilitating the inspection and repair of firehydrants. It is well understood b v those skilled in the art that the inspection and repair of fire-hydrants involves great expense and consumes a considerable amount of time. It is of course essential that these lire-hydrants, which constitute essential features of the fire-fighting apparatus of large cities, be kept constantly in Working order; but this is rendered more or less difficult, particularly in winter, because of the liability of the valve mechanism to get out of order or the liability of the hydrant to become inoperative by the obstruction of the drip or by the freezing of the water above the valve. Under ordinary conditions it is practically impossible for the inspector to determine with accuracy the cause which has led to the derangement of the hydrant, and in many instances leaks attributed to the hydrant have been discovered in the pipe connecting the hydrant with the main after considerable delay has been involved and expense incurred in removing the hydrant from its case for the purpose of facilitating the examination to discover the leak. Again, when it is discovered or suspected that the trouble is due to the freezing of the hydrantitis usual-to employ rock-salt for thawing the ice, but the salt destroys the leather valves and attacks the metal, and besides being inefficient is objectionable because of its injurious effect upon the working parts of the apparatus. Other expedients for thawing out nre-hydrants have been suggested, but they are impracticable for the reason that they involve radical changes in the construction of the hydrant or its casing and cannot therefore be employed in connection with hydrants already in position.

Having these several facts in mind, the object of my invention is to provide a cap or headpiece which may be attached to hydrants of any construction to facilitate the inspection of fire-hydrants within their casings for the purpose of enabling the inspector to readily determine the cause of the derangement.

n Another object of the invention is to provide novel apparatus for thawing out the hydrant and embodying a single pipe extending into the hydrant and casing through the cap and designed to be employed both for the in- `jection of steam to thaw the ice and for the ejection of water to clear the hydrant-casing in the event of the obstruction of the dripopening by ice or by any other substance which may find its way to the bottom of the hydrant and clog the drip. y

To the accomplishment of the several objects stated and others which will hereinafter more fully appear, the invention consists in the construction and arrangement of parts to be hereinafter described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and embraced within the scope of the appended claims.

In said drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of a fire-hydrant equipped with a headpiece or cap constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the manner in which an electric light is passed into the hydrant-casing to illuminate the interior thereof for the purpose of facilitating the inspection of the mechanism through the peepholeformed in the cap. Fig. 3 is a view showing the thawing and clearing apparatus in position to thaw out and clear the hydrant stand-pipe. Fig. 4 is a sectional view through the thawing apparatus complete. Fig. 5 isa plan view of the cap. Fig. 6 is a sectional view thereof, and Fig. 7 is a view showing the manner in which the vent or drip opening may be cleared by the application of a handpump to the hydrant-nozzle after the cause of the trouble has been ascertained by looking through the peephole in the cap.

Like numerals of reference are employed to designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

l indicates a lire-hydrant of well-known form provided with a nozzle 2, ordinarily closed by a screw-cap 3. The hydrant 1 is located above the ground, as shown, and is provided with a hydrant-casing 4, which extends into the ground and is equipped at its lower end with an elbow 5, provided witha vent or drip opening 6 and with a connection 7, to which is attached a pipe S, leading to the water-main. The flow of Water to the hydrant from the pipe Sis controlled by the hydrantvalve 9, the stem 10 of which is extended through and above the headpiece or cap 11 to facilitate the actuation of the valve. The headpiece or cap 11 constitutes one of the important features of my invention, since it is constructed in a peculiar manner which facilitates the inspection of the interior of the hydrant and enables special thawing and clearing apparatus to be employed after the inspection has been made to determine the nature of the derangement. The novelty of Ithe cap l1, which isl designed to be attached as the headpiece of any form of hydrant, resides in the provision of a peep-opening 12, drilled through the cap, preferably at one side of the center' thereof and disposed perpendicularly, in order that the inspector standing beside the hydrant may see the interior of the hydrant-casing for the purpose of determining whether the refusal of the hydrant to operate is due to the derangement of the valve 9, to the freezing of water above the valve, or to the obstruction of the vent or drip opening by a foreign substance. For the purpose of facilitating such inspection I preferably provide a portable illuminating apparatus comprising a suitably-incased battery 13 and an electric light 14, suspended from the end of a Wire 15, connected up with the battery in the usual manner. Then it is desired to inspect the hydrant, the inspector passes the electric light 14 into the hydrant-casing through the nozzle 2 and lowers it into proximity to the valve 9. The interior of the hydrant being thusilluminated, the screw-plug 16, which ordinarily closes the peep-opening 12, is removedto facilitate the inspection. Supposing now itis discovered that the derangement of the hydrant has been caused by the freezing of water above the valve 9, due perhaps to the obstruction of the vent-opening 6 or to the backing up of water from the sewer into which these ventopenings frequently discharge, in this event-that is to say, if the Water in the hydrant is frozen-I employ a simple and efficient apparatus for thawing the ice and for removing the water until the Vent is relieved'of its obstruction and permits the water toiiow from the hydrant-casing in the usual manner.- This thawing and clearing apparatus comprises a pipe 17, designed to be passed through the peep-opening 12 and to have its lower end located adjacent to the lower end of the hydrant-casing, said pipe being forced through the ice Within the l1ydrant-casing,if,

necessary. At the upper end of the pipe 17 is located an ejector 18, to one end of which is connected a steam-pipe 19, designed to be supplied with steam through a portable boiler 20 of any suitable form, preferably connected with the pipe 19 through a flexible tube 21.

The pipes 17and 19 are provided adjacent to the ejector `1S with valves 22 and 23 and said pipes are connected by an angular ley-pass pipe 24, designed under certain conditions to establish a direct connection between the pipe 17 and the boiler 20, so that steam may be injected direct-lyinto the interior of the hydrant without passing to the ejector 18.

The pipe 2li, like the pipes 17 and 19, is provided with a valve 25, so that by the manipulation of the several valves 22, 23, and 25 steam may be injected into the hydrant-casing for the purpose of thawing the ice therein or may be supplied to the ejector 1S for the purpose of creating sufficient suction to draw the water from the interior of the hydrant and to ei'ect its ejection therefrom by way of the pipe 17 until the vent or drip opening ishall have been cleared to permit the discharge of Water from the hydrant-casing in the usual manner. If, however, the drip or vent'opening 6 is clogged by a foreign substance, it may be blown out by establishing sufficient steampressure Within the hydrant, or, if it is more convenient, the thawing and clearing apparatus may be dispensed with in this event, and the plug 16 may be screwed into the peepopening'.` A hand-pump 27 may be connected to the nozzle of the hydrant for the purpose of establishing the necessary pressure, it being understood that in this use of the pump the hydrant is opened to permit the casing to be filled with Water, after which the hydrant is closed and the pump manipulated until the drip-opening is cleared.

It will be observed that by the peculiar construction of the hydrant cap or headpiece 11 the inspection of the interior of the hydrant is facilitated and that said cap or headpiece may be employed in connection with any of the well-known forms of hydrants to enable my system of hydrant inspection and clearing to be carried out in connection with Waterworks already installed and without necessitating such extensivereconstruction or rearrangement of the hydrant structure as would be costly, inconvenient, or productive of material delay. It will be observed, further, that by reason of the peculiar construction of the thawing and clearing apparatus described a single pipe is employed for the induction of steam to the interior of the hydrant and for the eduction of Water therefrom, a common source of steam-supply being provided for the injection of steam for thawing purposes and for the creation of sufficient ej ective suction to insure the expulsion of the water after the ice has been thawed.

It is thought that fromthe foregoing the construction, operation, and many advantages of my invention will be clearly understood; but while the present embodiment of said invention is believed at this time to be preferable I desire to be distinctly understood as reserving the right to effect such changes, modifications, and variations of the IOC) TIO

illustrated structure as may be suggested by l an eccentric peep-opening, of a thawing and experience and experiment and embraced within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim isl. A fire-hydrant provided with a cap or headpiece formed with a peep-opening located at an eccentric point upon the cap, and a removable plug closing said opening.

2. The combination with a fire-hydrant provided with an opening in its upper end, of a thawing and clearing apparatus comprising a pipe extended into the hydrant through said opening, and means for inducing a circulation through said pipe alternately in opposite di rections.

3. The combination with a lire-hydrant provided with an opening in its upper end, of a thawing and clearing apparatus comprising a pipe extended into the hydrant through said opening, an ejector at the upper end of said pipe, a steam-pipe connected to the ejector and communicating with a suitable source of steam-supply, a by-pass pipe extending from the first-named pipe to the steam-pipe, and valves located in the several pipes, whereby steam may be injected into the hydrant or may be supplied to the ejector for the purpose of creating sufficient suction to deliver the hydrant of its contents. y

4. The combination with a fire-hydrant provided with a cap or headpiece formed with clearing apparatus comprising a pipe extended into the hydrant through said eccentric peep-opening, an ejector lat the upper end of Isaid pipe, a valve-controlled steam-pipe communicating with the ejector, a steam-boiler connected to the steam-pipe, a valve-controlled by-pass pipe communicating with the first-named p-ipev and the'steam-pipe respectively, and a valve located in said first-named pipe intermediate ot' the ejector and by-pass pipe.

' 5. In a thawing and clearing apparatus for tire-hydrants, the combination with a pipe designed to be inserted in the hydrant, and

provided adjacent to its upper end With a valve, an eject-or located at the upper end of said pipe, a valve-controlled steamy-pipe communicating with the ejector, a portable boiler communicating with said steam-pipe, and a valve-controlled by-pass pipe connectedv at one end to the steam-pipe andat its opposite end tothe first-'named pipe at a lpoint below the valve therein.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto afxed my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

JOHN PHILLIPS MERN.

Witnesses:

S. DAvrs, P. B. EDPJDGE. 

